There have been great Diſputes, about the Genealogy of our Sa- | viour, as recorded both by Matthew and Luke. The Adverſaries of ; Chriſtian Religion have taken no ſmall advantage, from the ſeeming difference berwixt them, which even many ſober Writers, have thought it no cafie matter to reconcile. The Apoſtle hath caution- ed us againſt giving too much heed to endle/s Genea!log7es, which miniſter Cueſtions rather then Godly Ediſying, which is in Faith, 1 Tim. x. 4. yet certainly it is our Duty,as well tor the ſtopping the Mouths of ſuch as would Clamour againſt the truth of the whole Scripture (if not of the whole Chriſtian Religion ) as for the Vindicating Holy- Writ from their little Cavils, and thereby alſo conforming thoſe who are Weak in Faith, to make theſe things as clear as we can: It is plain that both the Evangelifts agree in their Deſign, by ſetting down the Genealogy of our Saviour, to prove him Lineally deſcended both from Abraham, and David, the two PErfons to whom was, made the promiſe of the Meſſtab, and the Stability of his Kingdom 3 and alſo in the Names of the firſt fourteen Generations, mentioned by Matthew, and here by Luke, v. 32, 33- and to Abraham, v. 34- Their diſagreement lyeth in four things. 1. In the form of the Pe- dizree. Matthew, beginning with thoſe who were firſt, Luke with thoſe that were laſt in order of time. But this is no valuable Ex-. ception, one Evangeliſt count forward,another backward. 2. Mat- thew counts by three Periods, each conſiſting of Fourteen Generat1- :
ons, Luke doth not, but neither is this of any Moment, 3. Matthew : ſets down our Saviour Genealogy, before he tells us any thing of his Conception or Birth ; Lake atter his Relation of his Conception, Birth, and Baptiſm. 4. Matthew deriveth our Saviours Genealogy, but from : Abraham, Lube trom Adam. All theſe differences, lay no Founda- | tion for any Exception. Several accounts are given, why Luke car- rieth up the Genealogy to Adam, the beſt ſeemeth to be this ; That, Matthew intending his Hiſtory Primarily for the Jews, judged it enough to prove Chriſt, the Sen of Abraham, and the Sou of David 3 but Luke deſigning the information of the whole World, deriveth him from the common Father of Mankind. By which means he al- ſo ſheweth, the Antiquity of the Goſpel, and lets us know that Chriſt was he who was promiſed to Adam, before Abrahams time, and that the Grace of the Goſpel is not limited to the Seed of Abraham. Thus alſo Lake ſupplyeth what was wanting in Matthew, and truly deriveth both the firſt, and ſecond Adam from God, the Father of our Lord Jeſus Chriſt, and of us all. But beſides theſe differences Chardly worth the taking notice of under that ndtion) there are ſome ſeeming contradiftions in the Genealogies, yet :not ſuch, but I thiovk a fair account may be given of,to any who will but firſt con- ſider, 1. That they all lye, in what Lube hath, from v. 23. to v. 32 and from the latter end ofv. 34. to the end, So that in v.32, 33- and part of 34. we have nothing to reconcile. 2. That theſe Words | the Son } is in the Greek only v.23, where Chriſt is ſaid to be the Son of Foſeph, but ever after itis ſupplyed by the Tranſlators. So as the Greek runs thus ; The Son of Joſeph, which was of Heli, which was of Matthat, which was of Levi, which was of Melchi, (9c. Which conſideration cuts off the firſt cavil how Foſeph could be tHe Son of Jacob, (as Matthew ſaith ) and the Son of Helt, as Luke faith ; for indeed Luke ſaith no more than, v. 23. And Feſius himſelf began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was ſuppeſed the Son of Joſeph,) which was the Son of Heli. That 1s, Chriſt was of Melr, and the ſuppoſed Son of Joſeph, but truly of Heli, the Father of Mary. his Mother. I know that ſome think that Jacob was alſo call-d Heli, (as it was ordinary with the Jews to have two Names,) others think that Joſeph is called the Son, becauſe he was the Son-in- Law of Heli, by the Marriage of the Virgin Mary his Daughter, ( Nami cal'eth thoſe her Daughters, which were but her legal Daughters, Ruth. 1, 11.) in this the moſt agree, but I muſt confeſs I think it is Chrift, who is here faid to be of Heli, Ctho he was repu- | ted,ard generally taken to be the Son of Joſeph.) 3. That Luke is here deriving our Saviour, not from his ſuppoſed Father Joſeph, but from Mary his true Mother. It 1s not to be conceive that Luke af- ter {uch a narration of the prediftions of his conception as he had given us in the firſt Chapter ſhould go to derive Chriſt from Joſeph ; and this gives us a. fair account why the Names are ſo different from David's time to the Birth of Chriſt. Joſeph (whoſe pedigree Mat- thew relates) deriving from Solomon-who was tne Son of David ſucceeding him in the Kingdom. Mary (whoſe pedigree Luke re- lates) deſcending from Nathan v. 31. s Chron, 3. 5. tells us he was another Son of David. So as after David's time, the Perſons named which before were the fame in our Saviour's Pedigree became diverſe, ſome the Progenitors of Joſeph, whom Matthew reckons, others the Progenttors of Mary, whom Luke nameth. This anſwereth the Ob- je&tion, from the differing nur>b-r of the Perſons from Joſeph to Zerobabel, (excluding them both JMatthew reckoneth but nine, Lube here reckoneth eighteen in wv. 23, 24, 25, 26,27,29, From Zoroba- bel to David, Luke reckons twenty-two Progenitors, Matthew but fourteen (leaving out three Kings of the half Blood of Abab,of which we gave an account in our Notes on Matthew. 1.) ſo as the Scrip- ture nameth ſeventeen, tho Matthew leaves out three in two difte- rent Lines ; 1t 15 not impoſſible that onc perſon in ſo many years might have ſo many more Progenitors than another, ſuppoſing
{
S. LUKE.
not probable that Lube ſhould corre what Moſes count I can give of it is, the Septuagint in Gen. 11, 12. have it juſt as Luke here hath-it ; and ir is certain,that Lube is his Quote tions gyr of the Old Teſtament, doth generally follow the Scptuagint, (be jy; the Tranſlation moſt in uſe among them.) Beza rells us of an ancicit Copy of the Goſpel he had, which mentioneth no Cainan.
I give thee, and the glory of them; for that is cli vered unto me, and to whomſoever I willz I g1ve 1t,
thine.
from Gen. t1. 18. 1 Chror. 1. 25. Put in Gerefis 17, we read, th